SENATE deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros yesterday said the new Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) law, or Republic Act 11954, took away Congress’ power of the purse, or its authority to provide for the expenditure of public funds.
Hontiveros, in an interview with CNN Philippines, said this is the “immediate repercussions of this law,” which President Marcos Jr. signed last Tuesday.
“And now under Maharlika, the finance secretary is authorized to move funds around, when (this) should be (the) sound decisions (of) Congress (with regards) the expenditures,” she said.
“Dapat ang Kongreso ang mag-po-provide para sa expenditure ng public funds pero sa kasalukuyang hugis ng Maharlika fund, the disbursement of the funds will be beyond the scrutiny and authorization regularly done by Congress. ‘Yung mga investments na ito, magiging beyond the reach na ng elected representatives. So, napaka-politikal at kulang sa sound fiscal foundations, the law itself at ‘yung magiging mga proseso nito (Congress should be the one providing for the expenditure of public funds. But in the present form of Maharlika, the disbursement of the funds will be beyond the scrutiny and authorization regularly done by Congress. The investments will be beyond the reach of the elected representatives. This is very political. It lacks sound fiscal foundation, of the law itself and the processes governing the funds),” she said.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri on Wednesday said Congress can exercise its oversight functions to scrutinize where the MIF will be invested in, but admitted that the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee, which will be composed of seven members from both houses of Congress, can only recommend where the investments should be placed.
Zubiri said the final decision on where to invest the sovereign wealth fund is with the nine-member Board of Directors of the Maharlika Investment Corporation led by the finance secretary and guided by an advisory council composed of the country’s budget secretary, economic and development chief, and the national treasurer.
MIF MICROSITE
Meanwhile, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said in a Facebook post on late Wednesday that the Department of Finance (DOF) has launched the MIF microsite as part of the efforts of the administration to promote transparency and educate and update the public about the sovereign wealth fund.
The microsite (https://maharlika.dof.gov.ph/) includes the salient features of the Maharlika law, videos taken during the signing of the law and some interviews of Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, and press releases about the MIF.
“Maaari nang i-access ang microsite para sa Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) simula ngayong araw! Makikita rito ang mga nilalaman ng MIF Act, pati na rin ang mga kaugnay nitong mga balita at event (The microsite for the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) can be accessed starting today. It contains the details about MIF Act, along with some news and related events),” the PCO Facebook post said.
“Bisitahin lamang ang https://maharlika.dof.gov.ph/ para sa updates at higit na impormasyon tungkol sa kauna-unahang sovereign wealth fund sa bansa (Just visit https://maharlika.dof.gov.ph/ for updates and additional information about the first-ever sovereign wealth fund in the country),” it added.
The website, however, is not accessible to all users at the moment. The PCO said it is coordinating with the DOF about the accessibility of the microsite.
“This site can’t be reached. Check if there is a typo in maharlika.dof.gov.ph. DNS-PROBE_FINISHED-NXDOMAIN,” read the message that appeared during a check of the website.
Under RA 11954, government financing institutions will pool together non-debt financial resources and invest it in a wide range of investments projects that would generate bigger returns such as foreign currencies, fixed-income instruments, domestic and foreign corporate bonds, joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, real estate and high-impact infrastructure projects, and projects that contribute to the attainment of sustainable development.
It may also be tapped to finance public and flagship infrastructure projects. — With Jocelyn Montemayor
